Pretty Bad Things





Chicken House, 2010
Fiction
ISBN: 1906427259
272 pages
Synopsis
Sixteen-year old twins in Candy-Store crime spree. Twins, Paisley and Beau Argent are in the headlines again. Last time, they were the ‘wonder twins’, when as six-year-olds they were found alive in woods after three days missing following their mother’s death -three days spent looking for their dad. Now at sixteen, life’s not so wonderful. Out-cast and exploited by their money-grabbing grandmother, they’re still clueless about their dad’s whereabouts. Until they discover an old letter from him. That’s when they decide to hit the road – and make headlines again. Holding up fast-food joints might seem extreme but if they can get on the news, and tell their dad they need him, they might get the dream reunion they thought could happen.
Critique
I think the general premise of the book is fun, but it’s just not something I could get into. Perhaps it’s somewhat that these 1st person narrative teen books are not my kind of read, but I think, even then, the pacing is a bit slow. I generally like the characters, and what they’re willing to do in order to find their dad. However, what I was kind of expecting/hoping for was some situational humor in throughout their journey, but I was mostly met by angsty teens who use a lot of sarcasm and word combination slang, like fu-larious, skankmother, bedgasmic, etc. I do appreciate that the narrative voice switches between the twins throughout the story, but they often describe experiences in such a similar way that it’s difficult to tell the difference between them. Considering the popularity of these kinds of books, if you’re into them, you will probably love this one. I just couldn’t get into it.
For the Classroom
This is not the kind of book that can be used as a classroom companion.


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